Apparatus and Methods for Removal of Pills from Packaging

ABSTRACT

A pill extraction device removes pills from a blister pack. The blister pack sits on a plate of the device, while a roller rolls across the blister pack to contact the blisters a row at a time and applies a force sufficient to extract the pills through the backing of the blister pack. The pills preferably fall through holes in the plate and may be collected on a tray under the plate. The roller is actuated by a crank, and a gear mechanism controls the advancement of the roller. Methods of extracting pills from a blister pack are also disclosed.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The invention pertains to the field of medicine disposal. More particularly, the invention pertains to apparatus and methods for removal of pills from packaging.

2. Description of Related Art

Prescription medications in pill form are conventionally provided in packaging conventionally referred to as blister packs. An otherwise flat sheet of plastic includes regularly-spaced and equally-sized wells, with each well typically receiving one pill. A backing placed on the back side of the plastic sheet holds the pills in the wells. The backing is made of a material that can be easily pierced either from the back, such as by a fingernail or other hard object, or from the front by the pill. The backing is often made of aluminum foil or plastic. The plastic wells are preferably flexible such that a pill can be pushed through the backing by pushing on the well. In some cases, a third layer, often a thin layer of cardboard or similar material is placed over the backing layer with holes in the third layer corresponding to the locations of the blisters. The third layer provides support to the backing and helps prevent the backing from being inadvertently perforated.

Pills are packaged in blister packs for institutions such as pharmacies, hospitals, nursing homes, and prisons. Such blister packs are typically produced to hold 30, 60, or 90 pills. A 30-pill pack is typically about six inches by about 9 inches in size. The blister packs allow the institution to easily count and account for how many pills have been used and how many pills are remaining.

When a medicine is discontinued, the institution is required to collect all of its remaining supply and then tell authorities that it will be disposed of on a certain day. On that disposal day, many institutions have faculty, typically two nurses, sit and manually remove each pill in the blister pack. This can take a few hours and is a waste of resources. Some institutions, such as large hospitals, are able to avoid this manual process by incinerating the entire blister pack, but for many institutions, including smaller hospitals, nursing homes, prisons, and pharmacies, this option is not available.

Rx Systems Inc. (St. Charles, Mo.) offers a deblister machine that applies pressure to blister packs to puncture the backing and release the pills without damaging the pills, but the deblisterer is large and expensive. The user pulls a handle down with a significant amount of force to press a flat plate against the front of the blister pack.

MTS Medication Technologies (St. Petersburg, Fla.) also offers a deblister machine, where the user pulls a lever down to press a flat plate against the front of the blister pack.

Vanguard Pharmaceutical Machinery Inc. (Spring, Tex.) offers two different models of deblister machines. One holds the blister pack in a vertical position and the other holds the blister pack in a horizontal position. Both models automatically remove the pills from the blister pack.

U.S. Pat. No. 4,909,414, entitled “Device to Remove Objects from Blister Packs” and issued Mar. 20, 1990 to Heath, discloses a device that includes a blade that, with the blisters facing downward, slices off the blisters above the pills but below the planar back portion of the plastic. The plastic blisters must then be physically separated from the pills.

Devices to aid in extracting pills one at a time from a blister pack for personal use are also known in the art, but these are not useful to institutions for bulk extractions of pills.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

A pill extraction device removes pills from a blister pack. The blister pack sits on a plate of the device, while a roller rolls across the blister pack to contact the blisters a row at a time and applies a force sufficient to extract the pills through the backing of the blister pack. The pills preferably fall through holes in the plate and may be collected on a tray under the plate. The roller is actuated by a crank, and a gear mechanism controls the advancement of the roller. Methods of extracting pills from a blister pack are also disclosed.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 shows a perspective view of a pill extraction device with a cylindrical roller in an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 shows a perspective view of a pill extraction device with a roller with cylindrical nubs for applying force to the blisters of a blister pack in an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3A shows a side view of a roller with oval nubs in an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3B shows an end view of the roller of FIG. 3A.

FIG. 3C shows a perspective view of the roller of FIG. 3A.

FIG. 4 shows an end view of a roller in an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 shows a perspective view of a plate in an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 shows a prior art blister pack.

FIG. 7 shows a perspective view of a pill extraction device with a roller with oblong nubs, a blister pack placed on the plate of the pill extraction device, and a tray located under the pill extraction device.

FIG. 8 shows a perspective view of a pill extraction device with suction cups and an elongated crank arm.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

A roller of a pill extraction device applies force to the blisters of a blister pack to break the backing for removal of the pills in the blisters from the blister pack. The blister pack sits backing side down on a plate with the blisters sitting above holes in the plate. The roller is actuated by a crank and gears to roll over the blister pack. The device breaks one row of blisters at a time and therefore requires less force than prior art devices designed to simultaneously break a full sheet of blisters. A tray may be placed under the device to collect the pills falling through the holes in the plate. In some embodiments, the tray is of a custom-made size to fit under the plate. In some embodiments, the tray reversibly attaches to the tray or the supports. Although the pills are preferably removed in one piece for ease of collection, in embodiments where the pills are being disposed of, the extraction process may break the pills into more than one piece.

Referring to FIG. 1, the pill extraction device 10 includes a plate 12 with a plurality of holes 14 mounted to a pair of supports 16, 18. Fasteners (not shown) attach each support 16, 18 to the plate 12. Each support 16, 18 includes a slot 20, 22, respectively, to receive the hubs (see FIG. 3A) at the ends of the roller 24. The roller 24 also includes spur gears 26, 28 with teeth that mesh with the teeth of racks 30, 32 located on top of the plate 12. A crank including a crank handle 34 and a crank arm 36 attached to one hub of the roller 24 allows the user to actuate the pill extraction device 10 by rotating the crank to rotate the roller 24 by engaging and disengaging the spur gear 26, 28 teeth with the rack 30, 32 teeth as the hubs (see FIG. 3A) actuate along the slots 20, 22. As the roller 24 passes over a line of blisters, the roller contacts and applies pressure to each blister. The plate 12 includes a raised portion 38 to contact an end of the blister pack and prevent the blister pack from sliding along the plate 12 as a result of contact between the roller 24 and the blisters. The pressure on the blister causes an opening in each backing to form either as a result of the pill being pushed against the backing or the air pressure in the blister compartment building to a sufficient level to pop a hole in the backing. The pill is then able to fall out of the blister compartment and through the opening in the plate 12 below the blister.

The pill extraction device 40 of FIG. 2 includes a roller 42 with rows of elongated cylindrical nubs 44 extending from the central portion 43. The elongated cylindrical nubs 44 are preferred for blister packs with small circular blisters and small circular pills. The nubs 44 line up with the blisters and apply pressure to the blisters to form holes in the backing for removal of the pills. The roller 42 also includes rings 46 spaced between the rows of nubs 44. The rings 46 contact the blister pack and, in combination with the elevated portion 38, prevent the blister pack from sliding along the plate 12 as a result of contact between the nubs 44 and the blisters. The pill extraction device 40 is preferably designed to remove all of the pills from the blister pack.

FIG. 3A through FIG. 3C show different views of a roller 50 with oblong nubs 52 extending from the center portion 51. The nubs 52 are symmetrical, as best seen in FIG. 3B and the roller is bi-directional, operating the same whether rolled clockwise or counterclockwise across the blister pack. The oblong nubs 52 are preferred for blister packs with oblong blisters, which are typically used for oblong pills or capsules. The thirty oblong nubs 52 are arranged in seven rows of four, one row of two, and one row of none around the roller 50 to correspond with the arrangement of the thirty holes on the plate. Alternatively, however, the roller could have only rows of four oblong nubs spaced evenly around the roller. The top surfaces 53 of the nubs 52 are shown as having a slightly convex shape but may alternatively be flat or slightly concave in shape to optimize the pressure applied to the blisters as the roller 50 passes over each row of blisters. The hubs 54, 56 on the ends of the roller 50 are visible in FIG. 3A through FIG. 3C. The crank arm is received in a central opening 58 and secondary opening 60 of one of the hubs 54 to couple the crank arm to the roller 50.

FIG. 4 shows a uni-directional roller 70 for a pill extraction device. The roller 70 has nubs 72 that are asymmetric with top surfaces 74 that are not perpendicular with respect to a radius of the roller 70. This roller 70 is intended to be operated only in a clockwise direction 76 with respect to the orientation in FIG. 4 when contacting blisters to extract pills. The angle of the top surfaces 74 is preferably selected to provide a more uniform contact with the blister and a more even pressure at the point where the pressure is expected to be sufficient to pop the backing of the blister pack. The top surface may be flat, slightly concave, or slightly convex in order to further optimize the applied pressure.

Other nub shapes may be used within the spirit of the present invention. In some embodiments, the nubs are of a similar height as the nubs in FIG. 3A but are substantially round rather than oblong. The nubs are preferably sized and shaped to provide enough force in a form that is strong enough but small enough to compress the blisters while allowing the pills to go through the holes in the backing created during the compression. Alternatively, the nubs may be for an entire row, rather than being individualized to correspond to each blister. In some embodiments, the roller 70 includes only nine nubs 72, each nub extending along the width of the central portion of the roller to contact all of the blisters in a row of the blister pack.

Similarly, the size and shape of the holes in the plate may vary to accommodate different shapes of blisters. For example, FIG. 2 shows both oblong and round holes in the plate. In some embodiments, the holes in the plate are the same shape as the nubs on the roller and the blisters. In other embodiments, the shape of the nubs differs from the shape of the holes.

FIG. 5 shows a plate 80 for a pill extraction device that includes a base 82 that attaches to the supports and a face plate 84 that includes the array of holes 86 and sits in the base 82. This design allows the size of the holes 86 to be changed by replacing only the face plate 84 without having to disconnect the plate 80 from the supports. The view of FIG. 5 shows locations of the support mounting holes 88 and the rack mounting holes 90 on the base 82. These holes 88, 90 receive fasteners to attached the supports and racks to the plate 80. The holes 88, 90 are preferably threaded to receive screws as fasteners. The view of FIG. 5 also shows that the rack mounting surfaces 92 are recessed in relation to the location of the top surface at the central portion of the base 82. The top surface of the face plate 84 is preferably recessed with respect to the surrounding top surface of the base 82 so that the formed edge prevents the blister pack from sliding with respect to the plate 80 while the pills are being extracted.

FIG. 6 shows an example of a prior art blister pack for use with a pill extraction device. The blister pack 100 includes thirty blisters 102 forming wells to receive pills and extending from a flat portion 104 connecting the blisters. The blister pack 100 is shown with the blisters 102 facing upward. A backing layer 106 covers the downward-facing side of the blister pack 100 and seals the pills in their respective wells of the blister pack. The blister pack 100 also includes a through-hole 108 by which it can be hung on a post.

FIG. 7 shows a pill extraction device 110 with a pin 112 extending upwards from the plate and a tray 120 for collecting the pills as the pills fall through the plate of the pill extraction device. A blister pack 100 is shown positioned on the plate with the pin 112 extending through the through-hole of the blister pack, and the roller 50 is ready to be actuated across the blister pack 100. Walls around the edges of the tray 120 prevent pills from rolling off the tray 120, or alternatively, the tray may be designed with a lip around the edges of the tray rather than walls. The tray may fit between the supports 16, 18 and below the plate as shown in FIG. 7, or alternatively, the pill extraction device 110 may sit in the tray.

FIG. 8 shows a pill extraction device 130 with suction cups 132, 134 and an elongated crank arm 136. The supports are shortened from the earlier embodiments to provide space for the suction cups 132, 134 and a pair of back legs 138. The suction cups 132, 134 extend down from under the plate and act as legs in combination with the back legs 138 to balance the plate and crank mechanism. Additionally, the suction cups 132, 134 preferably attach by suction to the surface on which the pill extraction device 130 is mounted in order to prevent the pill extraction device 130 from moving during the pill extraction process. Although the design of FIG. 8 includes two suction cups, one or more than two may be used on either or both sides of the device within the spirit of the present invention. The tray 140 is designed to fit under all of the holes of the plate while avoiding the suction cups 132, 134 and the legs 138 of the pill extraction device 130. The elongated crank arm 136 provides increased leverage to the user and makes it easier for the user to turn the crank. In some embodiments such as FIG. 8, the crank arm extends below the bottom of the rest of the device when oriented downward, such that the device must be placed on the edge of a table or counter to allow full motion of the crank arm. In a preferred embodiment, the crank arm has a length of about twelve inches.

In a preferred embodiment, the pill extraction device is made of the following materials. The rack and spur gear are made of acetal plastic. The plate, supports, crank, and roller are made of aluminum that is preferably anodized or polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) hard-coated. The anodization may be black or colored. In other embodiments, the plate and supports are made of a different metal or plastic.

In a preferred embodiment, the pill extraction device has the following dimensions. The plate is twelve inches long, 6.8 inches wide, and 0.44 inches thick. The rows of holes on the plate are 0.8 inches apart, and the columns of holes are 1.275 inches apart. The rack mounting surfaces are recessed by 0.15 inches with respect to the top surface of the plate. The supports are twelve inches long, six inches high, and 0.25 inches thick. The slot in each support is 9.43 inches long and 0.682 inches wide. The racks are eleven inches in length, 0.25 inches wide, and mounted to the plate by a pair of fasteners about 0.2 inches from each end. The spur gear has a diametrical pitch of 24 teeth per inch with 54 teeth. The crank arm is 3.5 inches long, one inch wide, and 0.4 inches thick.

In some embodiments, the top surface of the plate includes features, such as cleats, to increase the friction between the plate and the blister pack and prevent the blister pack from sliding on the plate. In some embodiments, rubber pads on the bottoms of the supports prevent the pill extraction device from moving around on whatever surface where the device is placed.

In some embodiments, the pill extraction device includes a roller and a plate with holes sized to be universal to all standard 30-pill blister packs. In a universal pill extraction device, the holes on the plate are preferably sized to accommodate the largest pill sizes. The universal pill extraction device may be used with 60-pill or 90-pill blister packs by cutting the blister pack into two or three units to form 30-pill blister packs.

In other embodiments, a pill extraction device set includes multiple rollers and plates that are exchangeable to accommodate different blister packs. In some embodiments, the plate includes a base, which attaches to the supports, and a face plate, which sits on the base. The pill extraction device set includes multiple face plates that are exchangeable to accommodate different blister packs. In such embodiments, the base of the plate remains attached to the supports and only the face plates are exchanged.

In some embodiments, the roller and crank assembly is separable to allow the roller to be easily exchanged with the supports remaining coupled to the plate. In some embodiments, both hubs are separable from the central portion. In other embodiments, only the hub coupled to the crank assembly is separable from the central portion. In other embodiments, only the hub not coupled to the crank assembly is separable from the central portion of the roller and the crank assembly is separable from the other hub.

In some embodiments, the pill extraction device includes a pair of indications that the user can line up when assembling the pill extraction device or when exchanging rollers to assure that the nubs on the new roller align properly with the holes in the plate when the roller is rolled across the plate. The indications may be grooves or marks.

In some embodiments, the through-holes in the plate are replaced with wells. Each well collects a pill from a blister and the pills are consolidated from the wells by inverting the plate and dumping the pills into a bag or onto a tray. The wells are preferably sized to receive multiple pills so that multiple blister packs may be processed before collecting the pills from the wells.

Accordingly, it is to be understood that the embodiments of the invention herein described are merely illustrative of the application of the principles of the invention. Reference herein to details of the illustrated embodiments is not intended to limit the scope of the claims, which themselves recite those features regarded as essential to the invention. 

What is claimed is:
 1. A pill extraction device comprising: a) a plate having a first edge, a second edge opposite the first edge, and a plurality of holes in rows and columns, the plurality of holes being sized and spaced to align with a plurality of blisters of a blister pack; b) a first support coupled to the first edge of the plate, the first support extending above the plate and having a first slot; c) a second support coupled to the second edge of the plate, the second support extending above the plate and having a second slot; d) a roller comprising a central portion, a first hub extending from a first end of the central portion and a second hub extending from a second end of the central portion opposite the first end, the first hub extending into the first slot and the second hub extending into the second slot; e) a crank coupled to the first hub of the roller; and f) a gear mechanism coupling movement of the roller by way of the crank to movement of the hubs along the slots.
 2. The pill extraction device of claim 1, wherein the gear mechanism comprises: a first spur gear located at the first end of the central portion of the roller and comprising a plurality of first spur teeth; a first rack located above the first edge of the plate and comprising a plurality of first rack teeth, the first rack teeth meshing with the first spur teeth; a second spur gear located at the second end of the central portion of the roller and comprising a plurality of second spur teeth; and a second rack located above the second edge of the plate and comprising a plurality of second rack teeth, the second rack teeth meshing with the second spur teeth.
 3. The pill extraction device of claim 1, wherein the crank comprises: a crank arm having a first end coupled to the first hub and a second end opposite the first end; and a crank handle coupled to the second end of the crank arm.
 4. The pill extraction device of claim 1, wherein the plate comprises a raised portion at an end of the plate, the raised portion providing a raised edge to contact an edge of the blister pack to prevent the blister pack from sliding with respect to the plate when the blister pack is located on the plate and the crank is being turned to move the roller.
 5. The pill extraction device of claim 1 further comprising at least one ring extending around the central portion of the roller, the ring contacting a planar portion of the blister pack to prevent the blister pack from sliding with respect to the plate when the blister pack is located on the plate and the crank is being turned to move the roller.
 6. The pill extraction device of claim 1 further comprising a tray located under the plate.
 7. The pill extraction device of claim 1 further comprising a plurality of nubs extending radially from the central portion of the roller, the nubs being arranged in rows and spaced to correspond to locations of the holes as the crank is being turned to move the roller.
 8. The pill extraction device of claim 1, wherein the nubs have a shape selected from the group consisting of a cylindrical shape and an oblong shape.
 9. The pill extraction device of claim 1, wherein the blister pack has thirty blisters and the plate is sized to fit the blister pack.
 10. The pill extraction device of claim 1, wherein the plate comprises a base coupled to the first support and the second support and a face plate removably mounted on the base and having the plurality of holes.
 11. The pill extraction device of claim 1 further comprising a pin extending upward from a top surface of the plate, the pin being sized to insert into a hole in the blister pack and located to orient the blister pack on the plate.
 12. The pill extraction device of claim 1 further comprising at least one suction cup extending downward from under the plate.
 13. A method of extracting at least one pill from a blister pack comprising a plastic layer comprising a plurality of blisters evenly spaced in rows and columns and a backing layer, each pill being held between the plastic layer and the backing layer in one of the plurality of blisters prior to extracting the pill, the method comprising: a) placing the blister pack on a plate of a pill extraction device with the blisters facing away from the plate, the pill extraction device comprising: the plate having a first edge, a second edge opposite the first edge, and a plurality of holes in rows and columns, each of the at least one pill to be extracted aligning with one of the plurality of holes; a first support coupled to the first edge of the plate, the first support extending above the plate and having a first slot; a second support coupled to the second edge of the plate, the second support extending above the plate and having a second slot; a roller comprising a central portion, a first hub extending from a first end of the central portion and a second hub extending from a second end of the central portion opposite the first end, the first hub extending into the first slot and the second hub extending into the second slot; a crank coupled to the first hub of the roller; and a gear mechanism coupling movement of the roller by way of the crank to movement of the hubs along the slots; b) turning the crank to advance the gear mechanism until the roller contacts the blister containing the pill to be extracted to compress the blister until the backing behind the blister breaks such that the pill falls from the blister and into the hole in the plate.
 14. The method of claim 13, wherein the at least one pill is a plurality of pills.
 15. The method of claim 14, wherein in step b), the roller contacts each row of blisters one at a time to extract the pills in each row of blisters before advancing to contact another row of blisters.
 16. The method of claim 14, wherein the pill extraction device further comprises a plurality of nubs extending radially from the central portion of the roller, the nubs being arranged in rows and spaced to correspond to the holes in the plate and wherein in step b), each blister in each row of blisters is contacted by one of the nubs.
 17. The method of claim 16 further comprising selecting the roller such that the nubs are sized and shaped to extract the pills from the blisters.
 18. The method of claim 13 further comprising collecting the pill on a tray located below the plate.
 19. The method of claim 13 further comprising selecting the plate such that the plurality of holes of the plate are sized to fit the at least one pill. 